1. Field of the Invention
This application relates to communication and advertising, and more particularly, to service delivery via a server pushed personalized advertising dashboard.
2. Description of Related Art
There are many Internet services available to consumers for a fee. Examples include Internet subscriptions to magazines, Internet Call Manager(trademark) (ICM), which manages incoming calls, and Internet access itself.
Various businesses associated with such services have attempted to defray the fee they charge to customers by generating revenues from advertisements placed on Web pages. Typically, advertisements on the Internet today are generally xe2x80x9cbrowser-basedxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cpulled.xe2x80x9d This latter term xe2x80x9cpulledxe2x80x9d refers to advertisements that appear on a screen as a consequence of an action taken by the subscriber. For example, upon visiting a particular browser, Yahoo(trademark) for example, the subscriber may be greeted by an advertisement banner whose contents are selected or approved In such case, the banner is pulled by the subscriber because it appears as a consequence of a user""s action such as visiting the Yahoo site.
The particular message that is currently delivered to the subscriber when visiting a Web site may depend on one of three methods for such delivery. First, a particular advertisement may arise as a consequence of a search that the subscriber performed. For example, if the subscriber uses Yahoo to search for automobiles, a banner displaying a specific automobile model may be displayed. A second method is known as channel advertisement. Here, the advertisement displayed depends on the particular page of a Web site a subscriber is on. For example, going to a travel page of Yahoo may result in a specific airline to be displayed in a banner. Finally, there may just be some rotation of advertising banners irrespective of what searches are made or what page is visited. Nonetheless, this type of advertising method is still pulled because it arises as a consequence of a subscriber visiting a certain Web site.
In addition, the advertising is context-dependent. I.e., the user utilizes a browser and a particular Internet portal with that browser.
Messages may alternatively be xe2x80x9cpushedxe2x80x9d to a computer screen. Pushed messages are displayed as a consequence of a server directive that is unbidden by the subscriber. Internet Call Manager (ICM) is an example of a service that pushes messages. Because one specific embodiment of the present invention elaborated upon below may appear in conjunction with the ICM, this Manager is discussed here by way of background.
A subscriber establishes computer dialogue with a data communications service (DCS) via a dial-up connection using a telephone link connected to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN). Two methods for connecting to a DCS include a temporary dial up modem connection over the PSTN, or a dedicated connection either through the PSTN or through a private telephone connection. For a temporary dial up modem connection over the PSTN, the telephone link is held in an off hook state. The use of a telephone line for a data call requires the exclusive use of the line. Fortunately, there exist several enhanced IP services, such as Internet Call Manager (ICM) or Unified Messaging (UM), that alert a subscriber to an event such as an incoming call or message by pushing a pop-up screen on the user""s PC. The pop-up screen may have disposition options (e.g., incoming call from xxx, do you wish to: ignore, reply, answer) or a simple alert (e.g., xe2x80x9cyou have voice mailxe2x80x9d).
As notification pop-ups, these screens may attract the attention of the subscriber. Accordingly, the appearance of the pop-up screen affords the service provider with an opportunity to provide an additional customized service to the subscriber, and creates an advertisement-based revenue-generating opportunity for the service provider based on the sale of banner advertisements. If the advertisement revenue is sufficient, the service can be offered for free or at a reduced price.
Another pushed method of conveying messages involves a xe2x80x9cticker tape.xe2x80x9d Such a tape or strip is a message which, instead of xe2x80x9cpopping-upxe2x80x9d at various times, runs continuously across the screen at a certain Web site. The information in the ticker tape may be personalized. For example, the subscriber may choose to display the value of the Dow Jones in the ticker tape. Typically, the tape contains no advertisement.
The types of notification messages with banner advertisements described above are lacking in so far as none is simultaneously browser-independent, pushed to the subscriber via an asynchronous interrupt (unlike a continuous message, which begins near the start of a session and ends near the end, a message delivered by an asynchronous interrupt has varying start and end times), and highly targeted by using personal information of the subscriber.
A communication service delivering messages to subscribers logged onto, for example, the Internet is presented. Such messages contain banner advertisements, and are pushed to the subscriber as an interrupt or pop-up. Moreover, the messages may be highly targeted to the subscriber by making use of such information as the subscriber""s identity, location, phone number, personal interests, and habits.
The subscriber need not be utilizing a browser to receive a dashboard message. During any Internet activity, such as processing email, and playing games, the message may be delivered to the subscriber. These messages represent unbidden interrupts, but are rendered more palatable to the subscriber in at least two ways. First, the messages can contain personalized messages, and hotlinks to subscriber-selected sites; the personalized messages might include information that the subscriber deems to be useful, such as a stock quote, or a sports score. Second, the cost to the subscriber of some Internet service is defrayed by the advertising present in the messages.
A communication service with a computer application, for example, is presented that utilizes a pop-up notification box. The notification box alerts a subscriber to a messaging event such as an incoming call or message. In addition, the pop-up screen contains a dashboard with personalized information and/or hotlinks to customized web pages for items such as stocks, weather, sports, news, local interests, travel, shopping, and games. The linked web pages provide the subscriber with a customer designed service (e.g., latest quotes on selected stocks and regional weather reports), but also contain banner advertisements, personalized messages, and hotlinks to other web sites. The advertising dashboard thus provides a customized service to the subscriber, and a revenue generating opportunity to the service provider through sales of banner advertisements and hotlinks. The pop-up notification box itself can display banner advertisements which are downloaded to the client prior to the call event.
More specifically, a method of defraying a cost of an Internet service provided to a subscriber is presented comprising providing a dashboard server that is connected to a computer of the subscriber; pushing an advertising dashboard from the dashboard server to a display of the computer by interrupting an Internet session on the computer, and by using data provided by the dashboard server; on the advertising dashboard, providing information to the subscriber; and to defray the cost of the Internet service, providing an advertisement on the advertising dashboard.
Providing information includes providing a hotlink to a web page, where the web page may include one of a stocks site, weather site, sports site, news site, travel site, local information site, shopping site, and games site. The web page may also include at least one of an advertisement banner and a link to another web page. The information may involve weather, stocks, sports, news, and personalized information that is preselected by the subscriber.
The method may further include obtaining personal data from the subscriber; and to defray the cost of the Internet service, providing an advertisement on the advertising dashboard that is targeted according to the personal data. Personal data may relate to at least one of education, salary, sex, and address of the subscriber.
The method may also include storing data for the advertising dashboard in a cache on the computer, and downloading data for the dashboard to the computer as soon as the subscriber is engaged in an Internet session on the computer.
A system is also presented for defraying a cost of an Internet service provided to a subscriber comprising a dashboard server connected to a computer of the subscriber; instructions for the server and computer for pushing the advertising dashboard to a display of the computer by interrupting an Internet session; a hotlink to a web page displayed on the advertising dashboard; and to defray the cost of the Internet service, an advertisement displayed on the advertising dashboard.
In a public switched telephone network providing telephone link blocked call redirection, also presented below is a method permitting notification and control of redirected calls, and delivery of an advertising dashboard over a data communications network, the method comprising using a telephone link, with an associated dial number, to connect a computer to a data communications service (DCS) via the data communications network to permit a subscriber to engage in a session with the DCS; receiving a unique data network address from the DCS; establishing a data path over the data network to a subscriber proxy having a dashboard server; using the data path to provide the proxy with a message including the unique data network address; receiving a call waiting message at the computer corresponding to a telephone call to the dial number; processing the call waiting message to produce an output perceptible by the subscriber; and pushing the advertising dashboard to a display of the computer by using data provided by the dashboard server. The method may also include storing data for the advertising dashboard in a cache on the computer. The call waiting message may include caller identification information involving calling line identification information.
Pushing an advertising dashboard may include interrupting the DCS with a pop-up message, which may have a banner advertisement, or a hotlink to a customized web page. The web page may be a stocks site, weather site, sports site, news site, or games site, and may have an advertisement banner and a link to another web page.
In a public switched telephone network (PSTN) providing telephone link blocked call redirection, a method is also presented permitting notification and control of redirected calls, and delivery of an advertising dashboard over a data communications network, the method comprising receiving a message over the data communications network containing a unique data network address; storing a subscriber dial number and the unique data network address; receiving a telephone call forwarded by the PSTN; obtaining dialed number information from the PSTN. The method further includes comparing the dialed number information to stored subscriber dial number information; for matching number information, providing a call waiting message to the data network addressed to the unique data network address corresponding to the dialed number information; receiving caller identification information from the PSTN; including the caller identification information in the call waiting message; and pushing the advertising dashboard by using the data delivered to said unique data network address, over said data communications network. The method may further include periodically transmitting messages to the unique data network address requesting a reply for confirmation of the presence of a computer at the unique data network address.
Pushing an advertising dashboard may include causing a pop-up message to appear on a display of a computer corresponding to the unique data network address, and causing a pop-up message having a banner advertisement, or a hotlink to a customized web page to appear on a display of a computer corresponding to the unique data network address.
In a public switched telephone network (PSTN) providing telephone link blocked call redirection, a method is also presented below permitting notification and control of redirected calls, and delivery of data for an advertising dashboard over a data communications network, the method comprising activating blocked call forwarding for a subscriber telephone link having a subscriber dial number associated therewith; providing a second dial number corresponding to a subscriber proxy for redirection of blocked calls to the subscriber telephone link, the proxy having a dashboard server; using the telephone link to connect a computer to a data communications service (DCS) via the data communications network to permit a subscriber to engage in a session with the DCS; receiving a unique data network address from the DCS. The method further includes establishing a data path over the data network to the subscriber proxy and providing the proxy with the subscriber dial number and the unique data network address; receiving a blocked call forwarded by the PSTN to the second dial number; obtaining dialed number information from the PSTN; comparing the dialed number information to stored subscriber dial number information; for matching number information, providing a call waiting message to the data network addressed to the unique data network address corresponding to the dialed number information; receiving the call waiting message at the computer; the computer processing the call waiting message to produce an output perceptible by the subscriber; and pushing the advertising dashboard to a display of the computer.
Pushing an advertising dashboard includes interrupting the session with a pop-up message, which may have a banner advertisement, or a hotlink to a web site.
The method may allow the proxy to receive caller identification information from the PSTN and includes the caller identification information in the call waiting message. The output may comprise messages visually perceptible on a video display connected to the computer, or audible sounds.
A system for alerting a subscriber, engaged in an Internet session via a telephone line, to a telephone call incoming on the line, and for delivering an advertising dashboard to the subscriber is also presented below. The system includes means for receiving a message over a data network including a subscriber dial number and a unique data network address associated with the telephone; means for storing the subscriber dial number and the unique data network address; means for receiving the telephone call forwarded by a public switched telephone network; means for obtaining dialed number information from the public switched telephone network; means for comparing the dialed number information to stored subscriber dial number information; means for, for matching number information, providing a call waiting message to the data network addressed to the unique data network address corresponding to the dialed number information; and means for pushing the advertising dashboard to the subscriber using data delivered over said data network to said unique data network address.
Also presented below, is a method of advertising on an Internet including providing a dashboard server that is connected to a computer of a subscriber. While the subscriber is engaged in an Internet session on the computer, the method may further include pushing an advertising dashboard to a display of the computer by interrupting the Internet session; on the advertising dashboard, providing information to the subscriber; and providing an advertisement on the advertising dashboard.
Providing information may include providing a hotlink to a web page. The web page may be a stocks site, weather site, sports site, news site, travel site, local information site, shopping site, and games site. The web page may include at least one of an advertisement banner and a link to another web page. Providing information may also include providing information relating to at least one of weather, stocks, sports, local interest, shopping, travel, news, and personalized information relating to a topic that is preselected by the subscriber.
The method may further include obtaining personal data from the subscriber; and providing an advertisement on the advertising dashboard that is targeted to the subscriber according to the personal data. Personal data may include at least one of education, salary, sex, and address of the subscriber. The method may further comprising storing the advertising dashboard in a cache on the computer. Pushing an advertising dashboard may involve downloading the dashboard to the computer as soon as the subscriber is engaged in an Internet session on the computer.
Also presented below is a system for advertising on an Internet comprising a dashboard server connected to a computer of the subscriber; instructions for the server for delivering data to the computer for an advertising dashboard pushed to the subscriber by interrupting an Internet session; a hotlink to a web page displayed on the advertising dashboard; and an advertisement displayed on the advertising dashboard.
Presented below is also a method of defraying a cost of a service provided to a subscriber, the service capable of delivering a message to the subscriber via a communicator, comprising providing a dashboard server that is connected to the communicator; while the subscriber is engaged in a session of the service, pushing an advertising dashboard to the communicator by interrupting the session; and to defray the cost of the service, providing an advertisement on the advertising dashboard, wherein the advertisement is targeted to the subscriber by using personal information supplied by the subscriber. The advertising dashboard may include information related to a topic preselected by the subscriber. The communicator may be a television, or a computer, for example.
Also presented below is a system for advertising directed to a subscriber engaged in a session of a service comprising a communicator for delivering a message to the subscriber; a dashboard server connected to the communicator; machine executable instructions for the server for delivering data to the communicator for an advertising dashboard pushed to the subscriber by interrupting the session; and an advertisement displayed on the advertising dashboard, wherein the advertisement is targeted to the subscriber by using personal information supplied by the subscriber. The advertising dashboard may include information related to a topic preselected by the subscriber.
Finally, a server is presented below for pushing an advertising dashboard to a subscriber by an asynchronous interrupt comprising a connector for connecting the server to a communicator, the communicator capable of delivering a message to the subscriber; machine-executable instructions for the server for selecting the advertising dashboard, the advertising dashboard including an advertisement that is targeted to the subscriber by utilizing personal information of the subscriber; and machine-executable instructions for said server for selecting data for the advertising dashboard, said advertising dashboard including an advertisement that is targeted to the subscriber by utilizing personal information of the subscriber; and machine-executable instructions for the server permitting the advertising dashboard to be pushed to the subscriber via the communicator. The communicator may be a computer or television, for example